Frozen Grave (Willis/Carter #3)(24)

‘Yes, organized chaos.’

‘So what do you do every day?’ she turned to ask Simon after the trolley had passed.

‘I get up, shower.’

‘No, you know what I mean. Work-wise. You must be really busy with the hostel. And sermons, I guess?’

‘I have a few staff in the hostel who work really hard, mainly volunteers, who come in to cook, clean, wash up, teach IT, help with benefits applications, housing, health issues, that kind of thing – the skills related to being able to manage on your own.’

‘Can people access the Internet in the hostel?’

‘Yes. We have free WiFi for them to use. There are only three PCs, so they have to keep to twenty-minute slots and book it.’

‘Did Toffee use the Internet?’

‘Yes, my sister taught him. He’s still at the basic stage though.’

‘Often?’

‘A few times. I could ask my staff. We can check how frequently he went on it. Why? You can’t think Toffee was on a dating site?’

‘You said he was a clever man. You also said that even you had looked at one now and again. There’s no reason Toffee was any different. If he could use the Internet then he could access a dating site.’

‘But he would have had to pay and that’s impossible. He didn’t have any money. He struggled to feed himself. He never had a bank card. It’s laughable – plus, he’s in love with my sister.’ Simon laughed.

‘Okay.’ Zoe could see he was getting agitated but pretending not to be. ‘We can check what people were looking at. That will clear it up. We’re working our way through her contacts.’

‘Oh, yes. I see.’ Simon became pensive. ‘Toffee is basically a good man, you know. Most days he comes to chat to me after breakfast. He’s articulate, clever. He follows world affairs. That is – until he starts drinking.’

‘So, would you have expected him to have behaved in this way? We have to presume he had something to do with the woman’s death. He was in that building when she died and he didn’t come forward with the information – the opposite. He tried to kill himself rather than answer questions. He had her phone.’

Simon turned away. ‘I am surprised and saddened if he did. I think he can’t have been thinking straight to get into such a mess. Maybe he was misguided in his aims or lied to. Maybe’ – he looked back at her – ‘this was someone else’s doing and he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. We have trouble from the gangs from Hannover Estate.’

‘We’re looking into that. We’re trying to locate one of the leaders – Mahmet Balik. Do you know him?’

‘I have heard that name – he’s the light-skinned lad – about twenty. Charges were brought against him for the attack on Lolly, one of our regulars, but they were dropped – insufficient evidence.’

‘When did you last see any of the gang members hanging about?’

‘I had to tell them to get off church property. They were trying to break into the storage units we have behind the church.’

‘Did they succeed?’

‘No. Those buildings are burglar-proof. Doesn’t stop them from trying of course. They will try and thieve just about anywhere and from anyone. They are responsible for nearly all the violent crime around here as well as the drug dealing.’

‘Do you remember seeing anyone on Sunday evening when the woman was killed?’

He shook his head. ‘But, I see them here a lot. Most days I see one or another of them. There’s a hard core of about six lads. They hang around to intimidate people. In the evening they bring out their dogs – banned breed by the look of them – and they strut around the streets.’

‘Did you ever see any contact between any of the gang members and Toffee?’

‘No. Why would they have anything to do with him? He’s just the kind of person they hate.’

‘But he had money from somewhere. Have you any idea where he got it?’

‘Maybe he won it. I just have no idea.’ He shook his head. He looked exhausted. Zoe smiled, sympathetic – she could see he was struggling.

‘Why are you here? You can’t help him by getting exhausted. You should get back to the hostel.’

‘I know, but I feel I owe it to him. He needs a friend and he counts me as one. I feel I should have been a better one and then maybe he wouldn’t have got involved in all this.’

‘What do you think he’s involved in?’

‘Well, somehow, he knew that the woman had been killed, he had her phone and he had money in his pocket.’ He shook his head sadly. ‘It doesn’t look promising.’

‘No, it doesn’t. I hope he tells us the truth when he comes round.’

‘Yes, I pray he does. Would you like me to see your mum?’’

‘Sorry?’

‘I can see your mum. I’d like to help her. She had her faith knocked. I’d like to help her regain it.’

‘Oh . . . thanks . . . I’ll ask her.’

‘I can come and see her or she can meet me for a coffee and we can talk. Just ask what she wants. I’m more than happy . . .’

‘Yes . . . thank you. I’ll tell her.’